Automatic stereoscope.



EASTMAN.

I AUTOMATIC STEREOSCOPE.

APPLIOATIQN PILED JULY 25, 1902 RO MODEL.

PATENTBD SEPT. 22, 1903.

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JNVENTOR.

TTORNEY.

UNITED STATES Patented September 22, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

TARLETON B. EASTMAN, OF SOUTH SAN FRANOISOO, OALIFORNIA, AS- SIGNOR OF ELEVEN-TWENTIETHS TO G. H. MOTT AND FRANOIS M. WEIGHT, OF SAN FRANOISCO, OALIFORNIA.

AUTOMATIC STEREOSCOPE.

SPECIFICATION formng part of Letters Patent N o. '739,402, dated September 22, 1903.

Application filed July 25, 1902.

To roll whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TARLETON B. EASTMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at South San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and Stat-e of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Stereoscopes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an attachment to any of the well-known forms of talking-machines whereby a number of diEerent pictures may be arranged so as to be successively displayed in harmony with the music or song that is being produced by the talking-machine. I prefer that the pictures so displayed shall be stereoscopic and viewed through stereoscopic lenses; but this is not absolutely essential to my invention.

My invention resides in a cheap and simple Construction for providing the above attachment to talking-machines.

My invention therefore resides in the novel Construction, combination, and arrangement of parts for the above ends hereinafter fully specified, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved apparatus, the cover being broken away. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, the cover being shown in section. Fig. 3 is a side View thereof, the end of the cover being removed. Fig. 4 is a vertical section on the line A A of Fig. 1, certain parts being broken away. Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail section of the hub, showing the attachment of one of the pictures thereto. Fig. 6 is a cross-section through the hub. Fig. 7 is an enlarged front view of the attachment of one of the pictures to the hub. Fig. 8 is an enlarged view of the end of said attachment.

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents a suitable base upon which is mounted the talking-machine 2. This talking-machine may be of either of the usual forms, and its construction need not be here particularly described. The carrier 3 of the diaphragm producing the sound of the song or other music and which travels upon the rod 4 has at- Seral No. 1 1 6, 8 B 3 (No model.)

tached thereto a chain 5, which passes around an idle pulley 6, supported upon a post 7 upon the base of the device, and is then, attached to the lower end of a lever 8, said lever being pivoted at its upper end upon a wall 9, erected upon the base. -A spring 10 retracts said leverwhen free to swing back and exerts a constant pressure against the pull of said chain. Said lever carries thereon a finger 11, which engages in succession a series of lugs 12 on adisk 13, secured thereon by means of pairs of adj Listing-screws 14, the stems of which for the purpose of adjustment may be moved in radial slots 15 in said disk 13. It will readily be seen that by means of these screws said lugs can be arranged at any required distances from the center of the disk, and, as Will be hereinafter seen, it is necessary that said lugs shall be arranged in a general spiral form around the center of said disk. Said disk is mounted upon the end of a shaftl, which shaft passes through the walls 9 17, the other end thereof being pivoted in a post 18. Upon said shaft is mounted a hub 19, having the end disks 20, and between said disks are pivoted strips 21, to which are attached the pictures 22 by means of bars 23, secured upon said strips by screws 24. Each strip has secured thereto a coiled spring 25, the other end of which is attached to' the hub 19, the Object of the spring being to throw the picture quickly forward as soon as released. In the revolution of said hub the upper edges of said pictures are arrested in succession by means of a stop 27, whichis preferably made 4 down below the wire 27, and the spring inmediately throws the picture forward, eXposing the next succeeding picture.

g For a motive power for imparting a rapid but intermittent motion to the shaft and the hub secured thereon and exposing the pictures in succession I provide a coiled spring 28, which is attached at one end to a gearwheel 29 and at the other end to a shaft 30, passing loosely through the hub of said gearwheel and mounted between the walls 9 17,

said shaft carrying upon its inner end a ratchet-wheel 31, engaged bya pawl 32, which falls by gravity into said ratchet-wheel, and thereby holds the shaft in the position to which it has been rotated. The end of said shaft extends, through the side wall of a cover 33, which incloses the whole apparatus, and said end may then be engaged by a suitable crank 34 to rotate the shaft, and thereby wind up the spring. The gear-wheel attached to the outer end of the spring engages a pinion 35 upon the shaft. 16, which carries the pictures, and thus applies rotary force thereto.

The notion of the shaft 16 is iutermittent,

being arrested by the successive engagement of the lugs 12 with the finger ll of the lever 8. It has been already explained how this lever is gradually moved forward as the sound is delivered from the talking-machine. Sup- 'posing one of the lugs to be resting upon the finger, then at a predetermined point in the delivery of the music or other sound the lever may be arranged to have been moved forward to such an extent as to disengage itself from said lug, whereupon the disk is immediately free to revolve, which it does very rapidly under the action of the spring, so that almost instantaneously the picture corresponding to said lug drops and the next picture comes into view and the disk revolves to such an extent that the next lug engages the finger. As already stated, these lugs are arranged at gradually-increasing distances from the center, so that after any one lug has been disengaged the next lug, which is at a greater distance from the center, will descend upon the finger and will be engaged thereby. When the diaphragm-carrier has reached a predetermined point in delivering the music, the lever will have been advanced to such an extent by saidmotion of the diaphragm-carrier that the next lug will in turn bereleased,

causing the corresponding picture to be dropped and another picture to be brought into View. By this means all the pictures can be exhibited at times corresponding to the character of the langage or music delivered from the talking-machine. The last lug 37 of the seriesis of greater length than the other and is of suflicient length to prevent the disk dropping while the lever is brought back to its first position for a new operation, the lug 37 resting on the lever-finger during the whole of the movement.

A Very important feature of my invention resides in the simple means which I provide for adjusting the times at which the pictures are exhibited. It will readily be seen by a suitable adjustment of the lugs in the slotted disk the pictures can be caused to fall at ex actly the time desired to produce the most harmonious combination between the pictures exhibited and the language or music delivered by the talking-machine.

In the present illustration of my invention I have shown the pictures as being stereoscopic in character, and in front of the cover for the device I have mounted stereoscopic lenses 43; but I do not desire my invention to be limited to this preferred form thereof. The usual crank-handle 44 for winding up the talking-machine is extended, as shown, so as to pass outside of the cover of the device.

For the purpose of starting the apparatus the shaft 45 is extendedout through the side of the cover and is provided with a handle 46. By means of this handle said shaftmay be turned, thereby imparting a longitudinal movement to a link 47, attached to the usual lever 48, which carries the brake 49 for stopping the talking-machine. By turning the shaft 45 in one direction the brake is released, and by tu-ning it in the opposite direction the brake is applied.

In the interior of the cover I provide an' electric light 49, suitably located for throwing a full light upon the pictures and shaded in front to protect the eye of the observer therefrom. Any one or more pictures can be omitted from the series displayed by removing from the disk the lugs which correspond to said pictures.

My invention is not limited to the use of a disk for carrying the lugs or stops for arresting the rotation of the shaft which carries the pictures, as in place of a disk a cylinder with suitable' stops thereon may be used, if desired.

I claim- 1. In a device of the character described, the combination with a talking-machine, of means for rotating pictures in one continuous direction to display the same in succession, a series of stops, preventing the move ment of said pictures, a device for releasing said stops in succession, and an operative connection between said device and the diaphragm-carrier of the talking-machine direct and independent of the driving mechanism for said diaphragm-carrier, whereby said device is operated directly by the movement of said carrier to release said stops in succession, substantially as described.

2. In a device of the character described, the combination with a talking-machine, of means for rotating pictures in one continuous direction to display the same in succession, a series of stops, preventing the movement of said pictures, a device for releasing said stops in succession, and a connection between said device and diaphragm-carrier proportioning the movement of the device at all times to the movement of the carrier, sub* stantially as described.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination with a talking-machine, of a shaft arranged to carry a series of pictures, mechanism for turning said shaft, a series of stops preventing the movement of said shaft, a device for releasing said stops in succession, and an operative connection between said de vice and the diaphragm-carrier of the talk ing-machine, causing said ,device to recipro- ICS IIO

cate in each direction with the reciprocation of the diaphragm-carrier, substantially as described.

4. In a device of the character described, the combination with a talking-machine, of a shaft arranged to carry a series of pictures, means for moving said shaft, a controlling mechanism for controllingsaid moving means, and a fiexible cord connected to the controlling mechanism and the diaphragm-carrier to transmit the motion of the latter to the former,

substantially as described.

5. In a device of the character described, the combination With a talking-machine, of a shaft arranged to carry a series of pictures, one edge of each picture being secured to said shaft and the opposite edge being free, a fixed stop for arresting in succession the free edges of all of the pictures, means for moving said shaft, and mechanism for controlling said moving means, said mechanism being mechanically connected with the diaphragmcarrier to move therewith, substantially as described.

6. In a device of the character described, the combination With a talking-machine, of means for moving pictures to display the same in succession, a series of stops preventing the movement of said pictures, a device for releasing said stops in succession, an operative connection between said device and the diaphragm-carrier of the talking-machine, whereby said device is operated by the movement of said carrier to release said stops in succession and means for. adjusting said stops to vary the intervals between their release, substantially as described.

7. In a device of the character described, the combination of a talking-machine, a shaft on which pictures may be mounted, a spring for rotating said shaft, a disk on said shaft, lugs arranged in general spiral form on said disk, a lever arresting in succession said lugs,

and an operative connection between said lever and the talking-machine to shift said lever to release said lugs in succession, substantially as described.

8. In a device of the character described, the combination of a talking-machine, a shaft on which pictures may be mounted, a spring for rotatin said shaft, a disk on said shaft, lugs on said disk arranged in general spiral form thereon, a lever arresting in succession saidlugs, an operative connection between said level-'and the talking-machine to shift said lever to release said lugs in succession, and means for varying the radial distances of said lugs, substantially as described.

9. In a device of the character described, the combination of a talking-machine, a shaft upon which pictures may be mounted, means for ro'tating said shaft, a disk on said shaft having slots therein, lugs adjustably Secured in said slots, a lever engaging said lugs in succession, and an operative connection between said lever and the diaphragm-carrier of the talking-machine to shift the lever to disengage it from said lugs, substantially as described.

10. In a device of the character described, the combination of a talking-machine, a shaft carrying pictures, means for rotating said shaft, a disk on said shaft, a lever shifted by the movement of the diaphragm-carrier, and devices carried by said disk and engaging said lever to hold said disk stationary, and displaying the pictures in succession, said devices being released in succession by said lever, substantially as described.

In witness Whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

. T. B. EASTMAN. Witnesses:

FRANCIS M. WEIGHT, K. LOCKWOOD NEVINS. 

